


Looking back

by RussianWitch



Category: Death Race (2008)
Genre: Dysfunctional Family, Family Secrets, Gen, M/M, Teenagers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-31
Updated: 2013-01-31
Packaged: 2017-11-27 17:12:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,388
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/664441
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RussianWitch/pseuds/RussianWitch
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Reality TV is bad for you, everyone knows that.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Looking back

**Author's Note:**

> Not beta'd if you feel like it give me a yell.

Piper Ames isn't usually one for these types of parties, but it is hosted by her boyfriend's best friend and she can't escape this time. The boys are rowdy; challenging each other to drink, to prove they are real men.  
She would laugh if it wouldn't sour the atmosphere.

After, she wonders how a simple challenge to watch some old reality show, well not old really it's still being made but from a season at the very beginning when they were still just starting out and only convicted felons participated, can change so much. She doesn't expect a lot from it except gore and nastiness she doesn't really want to see.

She doesn't expect to recognize Uncle Joe as one of the drivers.  
Piper doesn't let the shock show, but inside she freezes.  
She knows that her dad and Uncle Joe aren't exactly saints.

That pretty much came out after she couldn't go to Miami with her friends to celebrate Elena's 16th birthday. Her dad had sat down with her to explain that she couldn't enter the United States until she is at least 21, and even then it will be tricky since she won't have any papers.  
And no, they couldn't get her papers because, well turns out she had been kidnapped by her dad. Uncle Joe had helped too, and if she crosses the border she might not be allowed to come back. Despite having been kidnapped from people who hadn't been her real parents by Jensen Ames: her biological father.  
So she hadn't gone to Miami, but she'd figured that to be the worst of it.

Now, having seen the footage Piper has to wonder.  
There are a lot of holes in the stories her dad tells her about the past. She knows that her mother died, for example, and that dad had loved her very much but she doesn't know how he met Uncle Joe, or aunt Case for that matter.

She should let it go, that would probably be the smart thing to do; if they are hiding things from her it's probably for a reason.

But the feral expression on her uncle's face and the pleasure of the kill that almost oozes from him in the footage stay with her. So in the end, after a week of insomnia, she downloads the footage from the net and starts watching it again trying to figure out what she's actually seeing. The shock doubles when she makes out aunt Case as one of the female navigators; the only one whose driver wears a mask. After that she concentrates on spotting her dad and is relieved not to see him even in the pit-crews.

It's hard to reconcile the people she has known all of her life with the people she sees on the footage. Both her aunt and uncle have killed, are convicted felons, but at the same time are the people who have read her stories when she was little and stayed up with her when she was sick. The woman who has taken her dress shopping and came down from half way across the continent because Piper had freaked out after her first period, has killed people without remorse or a second thought, probably because she wanted to live.

Piper wonders if she shouldn't just pack a backpack and take off to Mexico City; knock on the door of the US embassy after all. They will be able to check her prints, find the people she'd been kidnapped from, and give her an explanation for her family's past. She doesn't get further than thinking about it; the footage is noisy and she, thinking to be alone in the house, hasn't cut the sound in case someone said something useful.

It's the first time in her life she sees Uncle Joe visibly pale.  
She sees his fingers tighten on the doorknob and hears the crack of wood splintering before he realizes what he's doing and lets go.

"Turn that off."

He even sounds strange; harsh and with notes Piper has never heard before.

"Your dad is going to be home any minute, he...we're going to have a talk then."

She nods; there are so many questions crowding her head that she's afraid of opening her mouth; in case she says something that...It's hard to be terrified of the man who fixed her bike and conned her into eating her vegetables. And yet she can see it in a way; Piper has always been aware that her dad and uncle aren't particularly nice people when provoked. She wonders how her dad got mixed up with killers; how he managed to convince them to help him get her and get out of the country.  
Maybe he helped with the escape?  
That wouldn't be so bad...or maybe he knew either aunt Case or Uncle Joe before they got sentenced.

Knowing there is going to be a "sit-down" just as soon as her dad gets home she wanders out of her room; down the stairs into the family room where uncle Joe is sitting on the couch. His rosary sliding through his fingers, he doesn't look up when she enters and Piper doesn't try to get his attention.  
With blood drained out of his face the scars on his cheeks stand out in stark relief, suddenly it hits her that they aren't some weird failed tribal markings from a dumb idea in his youth but like the advert of Death Race said... mementos of lives taken.  
Her legs can't hold her all of a sudden and she falls right where she stands; thankfully into a chair. Uncle Joe glances up, not meeting her eyes, before rising to rummage in the drinks cabinet.

"Your dad's going to kick my ass for this."

A moment later there is a glass with two fingers of clear liquid in it being waved in front of her.

"Drink it doll, it will take the edge off."

It isn't the first time she has vodka but it is the first time she's getting it at home. No one in their family is a big drinker mostly; they stick to beer, but there has always been hard alcohol present even if Piper has rarely seen it consumed. She has always suspected that most of it gets drunk on certain dates in the year when she goes on weekend sleepovers, and when she comes back both her dad and uncle Joe look like crap. They never tell her why they send her away at those times it's always been one of the family mysteries, but now that might get cleared up. She takes the glass out of Uncle Joe's hand and takes a sip or two; heat spreads through her body, another sip and she decides that gulping might just be better. Uncle Joe doesn't say anything at her ability to finish two fingers of vodka in one go; he just goes back to his place on the couch and the rosary until they hear the front door.

Keys jingle as they land in the bowl kept in the hall for that purpose, a bag is dropped; likely by the stairs and Piper watches her dad come into the room taking it in at a glance and tensing.

"What's going on?"

She can almost see the wordless exchange between the two men who have raised her, then her dad crosses the room to sit next to Uncle Joe one hand casually landing on her uncle's thigh.

"Well?"

Now that they are all sitting down for it; Piper doesn't know where to start. How do you ask your father why he has been sharing his life with a killer for more than 15 years? How they met... ? She digs her fingers into the leather armrests and takes a deep breath; they haven't raised her to be timid, it's the shock that's making her numb.

"We went to Roberto's party last night. His father has almost every Death Race season on DVD... even the first ones that they decided to watch...I...they didn't notice...but..."

Her dad doesn't pale, but his jaw goes tight as it does when some customer or another has really pissed him off. Knowing what she knows now, Piper has to wonder at her dad's self control since even the most annoying clients have walked away alive.

"They watched Hennessey's last hooray."

Piper is confused by the satisfaction that flows over her dad's face before he visibly forces himself to relax.

"So you recognized your uncle?"

The question confirms that her dad has always been aware who he is living with.

"And aunt Case I think..."

Her dad nods, his eyes wander the room to fixate momentarily on the glass on the floor. He frowns then glares at Uncle Joe who twitches under the gaze. She can see him decide to save the alcohol lecture for a later date.

"But you didn't see me."

Relief starts to rear its head in the back of Piper's mind...

"I...I figured you got to know each other later, maybe after they won?"

That seems to amuse both of them momentarily.

"Do you remember me telling you about your mother's death?"

She nods biting her lip and wondering if she shouldn't have asked for more vodka before her dad got home.

"I never told you how she died; she was killed."

Piper suspects that her dad doesn't even notice leaning into Uncle Joe as he talks, or the fact that the man covers the hand clutching at his thigh with his own.

"I was sentenced to life in prison for her murder...because the warden of Terminal Island, the organizer of Death Race, needed a new driver."

Not what she expected to hear.

"I met Joe..."

Her dad looks helpless for a moment, rubs his hand over his eyes and growls.

"No way to tell it nicely Igor, just get it out already!"

Piper wrinkles her nose at the strange nickname that uncle Joe only uses when he forgets himself.

"The warden wanted a good driver to keep the money coming in. She told me the previous driver who raced under the name Frankenstein got killed and if I didn't replace him, I'd never see you again. She told me that I only had to win once to win a pardon and she'd throw the address of your adoptive parents in as a bonus."

Frankenstein is a legend; even her school has a fan-club despite, no one being old enough to watch the actual races.

"Your aunt Case was the actual Frank's navigator, from the time Hennessey became the warden of Terminal Island. Joe was one of the main competitors..."

Machinegun Joe the nickname doesn't exactly fit, but that could be because she doesn't know the man who had raced under it.

"I noticed..."

It's a miracle that they haven't killed each other; as hard as they fought in the footage. And yet there they are; sitting almost clutching each other for support faced with their past. Piper realizes that both of them are terrified of her reaction.

"There was only one set of release papers; Hennessey wanted Case to kill me if Joe didn't manage to get the job done. We gave the papers to her and headed for Miami, then to get you...the rest you already know."  
She knows that they are leaving a lot out. She doesn't get an explanation for Frankenstein, her dad, getting out of the car specifically to break a man's neck. She finds that she doesn't want to ask about the reason behind Uncle Joe's scars. But there are memories scratching at the back of her head she does want explained.

"Why did you used to sleep with a gun?"

Her dad snorts; looking proud.

"We never were sure if you noticed or not. It was a precaution, there were a lot of people making money off Death Race. For a while we were sure they would shut it all down..."

"They didn't thou, it's still going."

She can't imagine not seeing the commercials on TV or the advertisements for the fan clubs in magazines and online.

"Smart girl like you should know they will go on as long as they're making money."

Uncle Joe is starting to look better; he's almost relaxes, but probably still waiting for the other shoe to drop. Piper wonders how much the two men have changed over the years.

"I know...I...why didn't you go to the police? Try to prove your innocence or get the warden fired?"

"Hennessey was good; she made sure to set up a decent frame. But even if the cops could have done anything, wanted to do anything; as soon as your dad stepped into the jail he was the wardens to do with as she pleased. Remember that economics exam last year?"

Economics have never been her favorite subject, but she remembers her uncle drilling her on that exam for two weeks straight. She had wondered at the time where the extensive knowledge of the US penitentiary system had come from.

"The prisoners become corporate assets as soon as they enter a corporate facility. All sentencing power is handed over to the warden of the corporate facility...so no human rights observers?"

It confuses her that they find it funny.

"Not so much. It's behind us, mostly..."

She knows that that's not entirely true just by looking at them.

"Except for the weekends, I stay at Kathy's?"

"Yeah, except then."

Usually when she's bothered by something she can count on the two of them hearing her out, comforting her. They aren't exactly a touchy-feely family, but in private she's never had to go without hugs or any other physical comfort.  
To sit away from them while having this talk is almost painful; she wiggles in her seat unsure if it's a good idea to go over to them or if they won't want her to, now that they've had to explain.

"So what now? Are we going to be seeing federales on our doorstep?"

Her uncle is the only person, as far as she knows, who doesn't mind having two Ames' give him the evil eye.  
It's a silent invitation really; she doesn't have to be told twice to throw herself on the couch.  
She'll have a lot of thinking to do in the coming weeks but, the men who have raised her aren't the same men who fought for their lives on national television.

"If you want you can email your aunt Case, about time she comes to visit again."

Both her dad and uncle rub at her arms. Her dad pushes Piper's hair out of her face combing it with his fingers like he did when she was little. She's half surprised to catch herself touching them back, tactically reassuring herself that they are still there, still the men who raised her.

"I'd like that."

They both hug her before her uncle gets up and wanders off to the kitchen to start dinner. She stays on the couch leaning against her dad, her head on his chest listening to his heartbeat.

"How much did Joe give you to drink?"

She can't help giggling at the return of the parental tone.

"Not that much just two fingers, I was starting to freak out."

Freak out is putting it mildly and she's still not sure if she hasn't fallen through a looking glass sometime in the last few days; to wake up in some alternative reality. Feeling sorry for herself won't solve anything, freaking out or wallowing in a past that isn't even her own won't get her anywhere either. She pulls herself together and gets up.

"I'm going to go set the table outside OK?"

All of them can probably use some fresh air.  
As she leaves the room, Piper hears her dad sigh and get off the couch as well.  
There are outside plates they use when eating in the yard that can be left out for the night when all three of them feel too lazy to do the clean-up.  
When she peaks into the kitchen on her way to wash up, Piper sees her parents wrapped up in each other; hands digging into flesh probably hard enough to leave bruises, feeding on each other's mouths like kissing is going out of style.

She leans against the doorpost and wonders at the fact that had she rejected them; their past, they would have let her go, but would have probably gone to pieces.  
She's used to the sight, even if they are spars with PDA’s; most of her casual friends don't know any better than a good friend and business partner is living with them.  
The business they have started is booming and not having to battle traffic individually makes more sense...or so the excuse usually goes.

Everyone is oblivious to the fact of the three bedrooms, only two get used. She still fondly remembers their first matchbox of an apartment where the two men had slept on a fold-out couch in the living room. Her favorite game, when she was a kid had been climbing over them early on weekends making them pick her up so she could fly. They never hid what they were to each other from her; even when she was too small to handle the information with the care it deserved.

Figuring that they will probably be wrapped up in each other a little bit longer, Piper goes back to her room to send an email to her aunt.  
If aunt Case is free she can be with them in a day or two.  
After a little while she can hear voices from the kitchen, eventually there is even a laugh and a crash that means they are throwing food at each other' heads again.  
Aunt Case replies that she will be there as soon as she can, and Piper feels like normality is returning a little.

Piper is sorry that she'll be breaking up with her boyfriend, probably as soon as aunt Case gets to them so they can eat ice-cream together and moan about men; as sweet as the boy is he won't understand the strangeness that is her family.

The kitchen isn't as much of a war-zone as she had expected coming down, and there are two different salads on the counter ready to be put on the table.

Her dad is grumbling while poking at the meat in the skillet and outside she finds her uncle indulging his filthy habit leaning against the house, and ashing in the probably roses she has been trying to grow in the back yard for a whole year now.

She puts the salad on the table and goes over to her uncle to pointedly stare at the cigarette.

"Your dad's a good man."

His statement catches her off guard.

"Implying that you're not?"

He makes a sound that's probably a laugh.

"Better not to go there doll."

"So a big bad man gave up his evil ways and stayed put for 16 years running a scrapyard and raising a kid that isn't his own? I guess we have different definitions of bad, or dad is really something special in the sack."

She sees him twitch, and mentally awards herself a point.

“You aren't too old to have your mouth washed out with soap Piper!”

“ You've been threatening that since I was five. Don’t believe you anymore.”

They skip the glaring contest in favor of watching her dad wrestle a plate of steaks to the table while juggling beers. She watches a lecherous smirk flow over her uncle’s face and starts to regret her comment.

“And yes he’s that good in the sack.”

Tossing the remains of the cigarette away her uncle saunters over to the dinner table; grabbing her dad’s ass and throwing himself into one of the rickety yard chairs to grab a beer.

She decides that this little display has probably traumatized her more than the revelation that she’s been raised by convicted felons.  
Probably traumatized her enough to demand a shopping trip with aunt Case and double her usual clothing allowance...  
Going over Piper sits down, grabs a beer, grabs steak and thanks the universe for her interesting life.


End file.
